Tentative agreement reached with Bell Technical Solutions

After around the clock bargaining since the January 31 deadline with Bell Technical Solutions, the union reached a tentative agreement late in the evening on February 5.

This was not only the first set of negotiations with Bell Technical Solutions since Unifor’s founding in 2013, but the union engaged in a historic and united bargaining process that brought together Ontario and Quebec locals at a joint bargaining table. Nothing like this kind of bargaining coordination has occurred for the Bell technical workers in Canada ever before.

In this set of negotiations, Unifor focused on securing work-life balance for the more than 7,000 workers represented by 27 different local unions. The core message delivered to the employer was that fairness for BTS technicians was long overdue and the union felt this message was heard.

The tentative agreement was unanimously recommended by the joint committee on account of the significant improvements achieved to working conditions.

The union achieved significant wage increases and upon ratification the tri-partite agreement with Bell Technical Solutions will be renewed to preserve to secure both job security and growth of the union’s membership. Full details of the new agreement will be provided to members at upcoming ratification meetings where members will have a say and vote on whether to adopt the contract.

For more information on the bargaining campaign, please visit unifor.org/BTS